Biodiversity Data Journal : Taxonomy & Inventories
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Taxonomy & Inventories
Morphological re-description of Kurisakia querciphila Takahashi, 1960 (Hemiptera, Aphididae, Thelaxinae) from South Korea, with notes on its Korean record
expand article infoYejin Kang‡, Hyobin Lee‡,§, Wonhoon Lee‡,§
‡ Department of Plant Medicine, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, Republic of Korea
§ Institute of Agriculture & Life Science, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, Republic of Korea
Corresponding author: Hyobin Lee (ihyobin1996@gmail.com), Wonhoon Lee (wonhoon80@gmail.com)
Academic editor: Colin Favret
Received: 08 Aug 2026 | Accepted: 29 Sep 2026 | Published: 02 Oct 2026
© 2026 Yejin Kang, Hyobin Lee, Wonhoon Lee
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Citation: Kang Y, Lee H, Lee W (2026) Morphological re-description of Kurisakia querciphila Takahashi, 1960 (Hemiptera, Aphididae, Thelaxinae) from South Korea, with notes on its Korean record. Biodiversity Data Journal 14: e210973. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.14.e210973
 Open Access

Abstract

Background

The genus Kurisakia Takahashi, 1924 belongs to the subfamily Thelaxinae (Hemiptera, Aphididae) and currently comprises seven valid species worldwide. Kurisakia querciphila Takahashi, 1960 was originally described from Japan as a subspecies of K. onigurumii and was subsequently recognised as a distinct species. In Korea, Paik recorded K. onigurumii, a record that was later referred to K. querciphila. Nevertheless, the current National Species List of Korea lists only K. onigurumii within the genus Kurisakia, whereas K. querciphila is not included.

New information

We provide a detailed morphological re-description and illustrations of the apterous viviparous female of Kurisakia querciphila, based on recently collected specimens from South Korea. The specimens were collected from Quercus variabilis in Jinju-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, in 2024. Host-plant and distributional information is also provided and the COI sequence obtained from a single individual was deposited in GenBank. The present study confirms the occurrence of K. querciphila in South Korea, based on morphologically identified specimens and provides taxonomic evidence supporting its inclusion in the National Species List of Korea.

Keywords

apterous vivipara, COI, host association, Quercus variabilis, species checklist

Introduction

The subfamily Thelaxinae (Hemiptera, Aphididae) is a small group comprising four genera and 21 valid species worldwide (Favret 2026). The genus Kurisakia Takahashi, 1924 currently comprises seven valid species (Favret 2026). Species of Kurisakia are associated primarily with woody plants of Fagaceae and Juglandaceae, although information on their sexual morphs and life cycles remains limited for most species (Favret and Aphid Taxon Community 2026).

Kurisakia querciphila Takahashi, 1960 was originally described from Japan as Kurisakia onigurumii querciphila, based on specimens collected from Quercus acutissima (Takahashi 1960) and was subsequently treated as a distinct species (Zhang and Zhong 1979). In Korea, Paik recorded K. onigurumii from Q. acutissima and Castanea crenata (Paik 1965), but this record was later referred to K. querciphila by Favret and Aphid Taxon Community (2026). Nevertheless, the current National Species List of Korea lists only K. onigurumii within Kurisakia, whereas K. querciphila is not included (National Institute of Biological Resources 2019). Thus, the taxonomic treatment of Kurisakia in the Korean fauna warrants clarification and updating.

Detailed morphological information and illustrations of K. querciphila, based on Korean specimens remain limited. In the present study, we re-describe and illustrate the apterous viviparous female, based on recently collected specimens and document its host plant and geographic distribution. The COI sequence obtained from a single individual was deposited in GenBank. Our results confirm the occurrence of K. querciphila in South Korea, based on morphologically identified specimens and provide a taxonomic basis for updating the National Species List of Korea.

Materials and methods

Sampling and morphological identification

Colonies of K. querciphila Takahashi, 1960 were collected from the undersides of the young leaves of Quercus variabilis in Gajwa-dong, Jinju-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, South Korea (35°09'38.47"N 128°05'46.42"E) in 2024. The samples were preserved in 95% alcohol and mounted in Canada balsam on glass slides, following published procedures (Blackman and Eastop 2000). Slide-mounted specimens were examined using a Leica DM3000 LED light microscope and identified as Kurisakia querciphila by comparison with the original description (Takahashi 1960). All specimens were deposited in the Institute of Agriculture & Life Science, Gyeongsang National University, South Korea. The following abbreviations are used in morphological features: BL, body length from the head to the end of cauda; Ant., antennae; Ant.I–Ⅴ and Ant.Ⅴb, antennal segments I–Ⅴ and basal part of antennal segment Ⅴ, respectively; PT, processus terminalis; BDAnt.III, basal diameter of antennal segment III; Setae on Ant.Ⅲ, the longest seta on antennal segment III; 2HT, second segment of hind tarsus; HFM, hind femur; HTB, hind tibia; SIPH, siphunculus; Cauda BW, basal width of cauda; and URS, ultimate rostral segment. Siphuncular measurements are expressed as diameters.

DNA extraction, amplification, sequence alignment and data analyses

Total genomic DNA was extracted from a single apterous viviparous female using the AccuPrep® Genomic DNA Extraction Kit (Bioneer, Daejeon, South Korea), following the manufacturer’s protocol. The DNA fragments were amplified using AccuPower® PCR PreMix (Bioneer, Daejeon, South Korea). The partial sequence of the mitochondrial COI gene was amplified using the primer pair LCO1490 (5’–GGT CAA CAA ATC ATA AAG ATA TTG G–3’) and HCO2198 (5’–TAA ACT TCA GGG TGA CCA AAA AAT CA–3’) (Folmer et al. 1994). We used the following thermal cycle parameters for a 20 μl amplification reaction: an initial denaturation for 5 min at 94°C, followed by 34 cycles of 1 min at 94°C, 1 min at 48°C and 1 min at 72°C and a final extension at 72°C for 5 min. The PCR product was tested by electrophoresis on 1.5% agarose gel and, if a single band was observed, we commissioned Bionics (Seoul, Korea) for purification and sequencing analysis. The sequence was assembled using SeqMan (version 7.0.1, DNASTAR Inc.) and alignment was performed using MEGA version 12 (Kumar et al. 2024). The COI sequence generated in this study has been deposited in GenBank under accession number PZ336710.

Taxon treatment

Kurisakia querciphila Takahashi, 1960

Nomenclature

Kurisakia onigurumii querciphila Takahashi 1960: 2

Kurisakia querciphila Zhang & Zhong 1979: 50

Material   Download as CSV 
  1. scientificName:
    Kurisakia querciphila
    ; taxonomicStatus:
    accepted
    ; kingdom:
    Animalia
    ; phylum:
    Arthropoda
    ; class:
    Insecta
    ; order:
    Hemiptera
    ; family:
    Aphididae
    ; genus:
    Kurisakia
    ; country:
    South Korea
    ; countryCode:
    KR
    ; stateProvince:
    Gyeongsangnam-do
    ; municipality:
    Jinju-si
    ; locality:
    Gajwa-dong
    ; verbatimLatitude:
    35.160686
    ; verbatimLongitude:
    128.096228
    ; geodeticDatum:
    WGS84
    ; georeferenceProtocol:
    label
    ; samplingProtocol:
    hand collected
    ; year:
    2024
    ; month:
    6
    ; day:
    7
    ; individualCount:
    11
    ; sex:
    female
    ; lifeStage:
    apterous female
    ; catalogNumber:
    coll#.20240607-001
    ; recordedBy:
    Yejin Kang
    ; occurrenceStatus:
    present
    ; associatedOccurrences:
    host: Quercus variabilis
    ; identifiedBy:
    Yejin Kang
    ; dateIdentified:
    2024
    ; type:
    specimen
    ; language:
    en
    ; rightsHolder:
    Gyeongsang National University
    ; collectionID:
    GNU
    ; collectionCode:
    Insects
    ; basisOfRecord:
    PreservedSpecimen
    ; occurrenceID:
    FB596FA1-CE4E-5671-BE4A-FF18EE7B9581

Description

Apterous viviparous female (Table 1). Body pale yellowish-green with a pair of green vertical streaks on dorsum, antennae; brown PT and tarsus in life (Fig. 1). On mounted specimens, the body is pale brown and oval, 1.82-1.99 mm long (Fig. 2A). Head and prothorax fused; the longest seta on dorsal of the head 1.90-2.67 times as long as middle width of Ant.Ⅲ. Eyes of 3 facets. Antennae 5-segmented, pale brown, except the distal end of Ant.Ⅳ, the half of Ant.Ⅴ is brown; 0.64-0.73 mm long (Fig. 2G). Ant.Ⅰ-Ⅱ weakly spinulose, Ant.Ⅲ with 12-19 setae, mostly spinulose; Ant.Ⅳ and Ant.Ⅴ intensely spinulose with 4-7 setae and 2-4 setae on Ant.Ⅴb; PT not narrowed and 0.04 mm long, with 4-5 short apical setae; 0.31-0.41 times as long as Ant.Ⅴb. The longest seta on antennal segment III is 0.03-0.07 mm long. URS tapering and narrow, 0.12-0.14 mm long, with 5-8 accessory setae; the ultimate rostral segment passing the 2nd coxae (Fig. 2D). Hind femur fused with trochanter, smooth dorsally, spinulose and bearing setae ventrally; hind tibia is spinulose (Fig. 2B); First tarsal segment with 7–8 setae; 2HT brown and spinulose with 7-11 setae (Fig. 2F). Abdomen bearing transverse lines; smooth ventrally, pointed setae dorsally. Siphunculus 0.05-0.07 mm in diameter (Fig. 2C); Cauda with 8-16 (mean 12) setae (Fig. 2E); 0.25-0.36 times as long as width of Cauda.

Table 1.
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The biometric data of Kurisakia querciphila.

Body parts

Kurisakia querciphila (n = 11)

Mean

Range

Measurements (mm)

Body

1.87

1.82–1.99

Whole antennae

0.68

0.64–0.73

Ant.Ⅰ

0.07

0.06–0.08

Ant.Ⅱ

0.07

0.06–0.08

Ant.Ⅲ

0.29

0.27–0.32

Ant.Ⅳ

0.11

0.10–0.12

Ant.Ⅴb

0.11

0.11–0.12

PT

0.04

0.04–0.04

URS

0.13

0.12–0.14

HFM

0.42

0.41–0.43

HTB

0.54

0.51–0.57

2HT

0.12

0.11–0.12

SIPH diameter

0.06

0.05–0.07

Cauda

0.05

0.05–0.07

Cauda BW

0.18

0.17–0.20

BDAnt.Ⅲ

0.04

0.03–0.06

Setae on Ant.Ⅲ

0.06

0.03–0.07

No. of setae on

Ant.Ⅰ

3

3–4

Ant.Ⅱ

2

2–3

Ant.Ⅲ

14

12–19

URS

7

5–8

Cauda

12

8–16

Ratio (times)

Whole Ant/BL

0.36

0.33–0.38

PT/Ant.Ⅴb

0.34

0.31–0.41

PT/Ant.Ⅲ

0.14

0.12–0.16

URS/2HT

1.15

1.01–1.29

URS/Ant.Ⅴb

1.19

1.01–1.28

HFM/Ant.Ⅲ

1.44

1.32–1.55

SIPH diameter/BL

0.03

0.03–0.04

SIPH diameter/Ant.Ⅲ

0.20

0.17–0.22

Cauda/Cauda BW

0.30

0.25–0.36

Setae on Ant.Ⅲ/BDAnt.Ⅲ

1.71

0.62–2.11
Figure 1.  

Apterous viviparous females of Kurisakia querciphila on Quercus variabilis.

Figure 2.  

Apterous viviparous female of Kurisakia querciphila. A Whole body; B HTB; C SIPH; D URS; E Cauda; F 2HT; G Whole Antenna. Scale bar: 500 µm (A); 200 µm (B, G); 100 µm (E); 50 µm (C, D, F).

Distribution

South Korea, Japan (Favret and Aphid Taxon Community 2026, Takahashi 1960).

Host plants

Quercus variabilis (in this study), Q. acutissima, Q. glauca, Q. serrata (Takahashi 1960, Favret and Aphid Taxon Community 2026).

Taxonomic remarks

Apterous viviparous females of K. querciphila can be distinguished from those of K. onigurumii by the number of setae on the first tarsal segment: 7–8 in K. querciphila versus 5–6 in K. onigurumii (Takahashi 1960). The presence of 7–8 setae on the first tarsal segment was confirmed in the Korean specimens examined in this study.

Published accounts describe apterous females of K. querciphila as yellow with paired longitudinal green stripes on the dorsum and those of K. onigurumii as green with pale legs and antennae. Their reported host associations also differ: K. querciphila is associated with Quercus, whereas K. onigurumii is principally recorded from Juglans and Pterocarya (Favret and Aphid Taxon Community 2026). The live colouration of the Korean specimens (Fig. 1) and their occurrence on Q. variabilis are consistent with the published account of K. querciphila.

Paik’s (1965) Korean record of K. onigurumii was subsequently referred to K. querciphila (Favret and Aphid Taxon Community 2026). The present study, therefore, provides a detailed morphological re-description, based on newly-collected Korean specimens rather than the first national record of the species.

The COI sequence was generated from a single individual and is provided as a reference associated with the morphologically identified material. Molecular sampling was limited to one individual because the aim was to provide a reference sequence, rather than to assess genetic variation within the colony or population. Intraspecific COI variation was not assessed in this study.

Acknowledgements

This study was supported by a grant from the Honam National Institute of Biological Resources (HNIBR), funded by the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment (MCEE) of Republic of Korea (HNIBR2026-A-2-04). This study was also carried out with the support of “Research Program for Agriculture Science and Technology Development (Project No. RS-2025-02216505)” Rural Development Administration, Republic of Korea.

Author contributions

YK (M.S.) collected the specimens and wrote the manuscript. YK (M.S.), HL (Dr.) and WL (Professor) performed the experiments. WL (Professor) designed the experiment and advised thesis writing.

References

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